Dynamical Rearrangement of Symmetry and Robustness in Physics and Biology

Abstract

The mechanism of the dynamical rearrangement of symmetry in quantum field theory underlies the phenomenon of coherent boson condensation in the vacuum state. Coherent states appear to be related to fractal self-similarity. The dynamical paradigm of coherence opens the way to an integrated vision of natural phenomena and it may possibly rule morphogenetic processes. Robustness properties of physical systems, such as dynamical and functional robustness, topological robustness, multilevel and semantic robustness may find their root in coherence. Possible extension to biology and neuroscience is discussed.

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Acknowledgments

I thank the anonymous referee and the Editors of this volume for their suggestions and help. Of course, the responsibility of statements and positions presented in this paper is only mine. I am glad to dedicate this work to the memory of Walter J. Freeman in the occasion of one year since his departure and to celebrate the wisdom of Antonio Gramsci on the 80th year since his tragic death.

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